I'm getting older...

Inserted blank basket and locked the PF in...
pressed the brew button...
forgot I did so...
left for 40+ MINUTES....
came back but didn't notice a thing...until...
loud noises coming from the machine...
turned it off...then remembered what I did

!@#$& rotary pumps, they're quiet! Now what? I ran the machine again and all seems fine...what should I expect or look for or test for?

Just keep using it until something explodes or dies...

That is a long time, but if it is still operating properly with no excessive or new sounds you are probably OK for now. At least you know that the OPV is operating properly.

Good thing you were using a blind basket. otherwise you would have had to wade over to the machine to shut it down

Hi guys,

the OPV is usually set to around 12bar so if the pump bypass is set to 9bar the OPV won't even work, all the 'excess' pressure is being circulated inside the pump. I'd say after 40min it would overheat, but apparently it didn't so the pump itself might be fine, but I'd check the inside of the machine to see if nothing leaks (40min under 9bar is quite a lot).

What noises from inside the machine were you hearing? oh and where is the pump installed? I have mine under the sink and I can still hear it even when I'm 5m away.

Regards,
dsc.

Yeah, Tom, I agree with your comment on the OPV and pump bypass. Does Randy know something we don't?

Hmmm, the noise, I think, was like wwooooshshshshshsh, like a high pressure leak, but I only heard it for one second or so before I shut the machine off...can't really make a solid statement about the noise.

The pump is inside the machine, I don't know how I missed the sound of it running, I guess I was focused on other stuff .

And yeah, thanks, I should check for leaks. Any tips? I ran a few blanks after the incident but didn't get that loud noise again; could it be the pump getting hot that made that noise or should I seriously be checking for leaks everywhere (the HX, every connection, the pump, oh lord what have I got myslef into!)?

dsc wrote:...40min under 9bar is quite a lot.

I wouldn't worry too much. Most espresso machine hydraulics will be subjected to the max OPV pressure while reaching operating temperature due to thermal expansion (that's why they drip-drip-drip on startup). After the first extraction, the idle pressure is somewhere between the line pressure and max OPV pressure.

coffee.me wrote:..... Does Randy know something we don't?

HIGHLY unlikely!!!!

The only things I would think could go wrong would be either the pump overheating or the group solenoid overheating. I don't think anything else in there would be too stressed by 40 minutes at 9bar.

It's been 36+ hours, and several cups, since the incident with no apparent ill-effect